The scene was painful to watch and, unfortunately, probably familiar to a multitude of women. There sits the person with power, behind a desk, banked by cronies who heckle and laugh and egg on. There, in front of the desk, is the vulnerable person, whose fate is held, in one way or another, in the hands of the powerful. Suddenly the powerful one decides to play a little game of entitlement, commands the vulnerable one to come a little closer,… Read more

So, here goes. Let’s talk about the yet-another-school shooting. It’s taken me some time. The world feels heavy and dark in these days. To be honest, I have been heavy and dark these days. And every day, when I stroke my son’s cheek to wake him up for school, or hug my daughter goodbye as she goes to catch the bus, my breath catches in my throat for a minute, and I have to remind myself to keep moving. To… Read more

One of the strange things that happens when you go to seminary is that God dies right in front of your eyes. It’s a not a one-time event nor is it a slow, painful death. Rather, it is a long series of catastrophes, gory massacres that seem to happen over and over again as each embedded idea is dug up from its grave, examined mercilessly, then either cast on the fire or set aside for further inspection. I… Read more

Yesterday, as John Piper released a blog post that explained why women should not have teaching positions in seminary, I sat in a classroom in Los Angeles, learning from process theologian Monica Coleman. For a seminary class. With other women. Who’s John Piper again? Oh right. He’s this guy with a really big platform who thinks that the Bible teaches complementarianism and that women can not lead men. But don’t worry ladies — it’s not about your competence… Read more

I’m starting to understand the whore of Babylon imagery in Revelations. Donald Trump’s disgusting shithole comment doesn’t shock me. It doesn’t even sadden me, if I’m going to be totally honest. You get what you pay for, and Americans sold their soul for some glitz and fluff when they elected a man who would say anything to get the job he didn’t really want so he could stick it to the people he hates. I get it, though…. Read more

I was never part of the purity movement. In fact, people who knew me when probably just spit out whatever alcoholic drink they’re sipping and are barely holding back a loud and mighty cackle. I’m not saying I’m proud of everything I’ve done, or that it was healthy. But I am pretty grateful that I never underwent some super creepy ceremony where my father gave me a ring, I was “courted” as if I were chattel, or programmed to believe… Read more

***Trigger Warning: This post includes a graphic description of rape and sexual violence. Please proceed carefully, and above all, practice self-care.*** The very first post I saw this morning when I opened Facebook said, simply, Oh Matt Lauer…. Immediately, I Googled. Was he dead? I wondered. What happened? It was a quick search to discover the headlines. He wasn’t dead. He was fired, for sexual misconduct. Et tu, Brute? Next, I opened my email. There, I found something more expected: the story… Read more

I was standing in a shopping mall parking lot on Black Friday, shoving bags into my car, when my phone pinged to tell me I had a Facebook message. It was from an old, dear friend of mine. “I’d love to read a piece someday about Jesus and what he said about justice, fairness, equity, accumulation of material wealth, etc. I hear and see so many “big business Christians” who seem to have no problem with this, and still go… Read more

My friend is dying. It’s one of those weird truths that doesn’t seem real — like a distant memory of a movie of someone else’s life I saw once, a long time ago. It’s a reality that stands next to my own reality, strangely separate from the rest of my life, and this is made true by the fact that we have not seen each other in years, not heard each other’s voices in as long. Though our friendship… Read more

Last year, I had a conversation with a woman I’ll call Sandy.* Sandy was a coaching client of mine who is a leader in the world of progressive Christianity. She’d helped organize an event, and she and her colleagues wanted to be very intentional about including multiple voices. They know that one of the biggest problems facing Christianity today — including progressive Christianity — is the fact that so many of our conferences have all white speakers — often, all white male… Read more